How can we cue students so that they experience creating a character quickly without frustration? Here is a recipe that is sure fire!
First create a character and then perhaps build a story or Create A Comic Strip around the look and feel.
Start with two ovals of equal size, one on top of the other. The top is the head and the one below will be the body.
Ask the class to brain storm an emotion and make a list on the board.
- happy
- sad
- exotic
- melancholy
- angry
- passive
- quizzical
- zany
As the list grows encourage the students to think of emotions that are not mundane.
Choose one that offers potential and allow the students to make suggestions about what that character would look like. Either you can draw it on the board or you can have a students do this. If you really feel adventurous allow the students to add to the figure one item or characteristic at a time.
The more off beat the character the better.
Here are two I have created with different classes.
Nerd, Of The Elves
Sleepy, (and more than a little annoyed)
Once you have the characters created the lesson can be multivariant.
Nerd, was done in a class where the students were at the beginning of a book writing exercise. We were discussing titles and what book covers were to look like. The computers in the background gave the reader some idea of what Nerdiness was going to be like in Elf Land.
Sleepy, was an exercise I did with students where we explored the idea of making the reader curious by posing a question through the picture. “What was this guy doing out with a lantern in his pajamas?”
I like to explore conceptually with students. We look at ideas like just how much of a story can the illustrator convey in a picture.
You can create a lead on lesson by challenging the students to tell a story in a limited number of frames. The less frames required to convey a message the better.
Appreciative Inquiry will unleash a wealth of creative energy. Students can pair up and try to work out the stories from each others pictures. Perhaps you can polish their work and create a little in class magazine! here is an article about How To Create A Comic Strip
If you would like to share any work you have created you are most welcome.
